APC to sue INEC over Zamfara, rejects Okorocha’s in-law

The National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, yesterday said the party had told its lawyers to approach court over the stand of the electoral body on its eligibility to field candidates in the 2019 general elections.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had barred the APC in Zamfara State from fielding candidates for any position during the 2019 general elections in a letter to the ruling party’s national chairman.

The letter, signed by the Acting Secretary of the commission, Okechukwu Ndeche, said it received reports from its Zamfara office, indicating that no primaries were conducted in the state “notwithstanding that our officials were fully mobilised and deployed.”

But Oshiomhole, who addressed journalists on the development in Zamfara, Ogun, Imo and Rivers states, said INEC could not hand over any state to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) or any other political party.

“We have asked our lawyers to approach the court. INEC can’t award a state to PDP or any other political party. It has to do with the decision of the people.

“I believe the court will look at the rules. We want to see INEC as an impartial arbiter. We have confidence in the judiciary,” he said on the Zamfara case.

Oshiomhole also spoke on the reasons why the party failed to succumb to alleged pressure mounted by Governors Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State and Rochas Okorocha of Imo State to accept their preferred governorship candidates.

Oshiomhole said Amosun’s preferred ‘consensus candidate’, Adekunle Akinlade, lost out of the contest in court for his failure to participate in the primary election conducted by the panel sent by the National Working Committee (NWC).

He said the matter in Ogun State had been concluded after the party had submitted the name of Prince Dapo Abiodun as the governorship candidate.

The APC national chairman said the Secretary to the State Government (SSG) and Ogun State APC chairman had no power to serve as the chief presiding officers as displayed during the primary organized by the governor’s group.

He berated the governor for publicly announcing consensus candidates without recourse to all the critical stakeholders, saying the “APC constitution does not recognize emperors”.

On Imo State, Oshiomhole said the NWC accepted the governorship candidature of Sen. Hope Uzodinma because the primary that produced him was in substantial compliance with constitutional provisions.

He said the party had to heed the advice of the state chief judge who advised him in order not to have anything to do with the primary that produced his in-law, Mr Uche Nwosu.

He said the party would not help Okorocha to create a political dynasty and distanced the party from the governor’s altercation with religious leaders in Imo State.

The APC chairman reminded the governor that he had teeth to bite after helping him to conduct fresh congresses, having been swept away by the one conducted by the Chief John OdigieOyegun-led NWC.

On the current situation in Rivers State, Oshiomhole said since the Supreme Court had nullified the congresses in the state, a meeting of stakeholders would be convened where a decision would be taken on new ward, local government and state congresses to produce fresh party officials.

He said the party had accepted the apex court’s judgment, adding that those who purportedly attacked the court were not APC members but ‘busybodies’.